The subscription period for the IPO of Amanat Holding’s Riyadh-based education arm Almasar Education on Tadawul will kick off in November, according to its newly issued prospectus (pdf). This comes a little under a month after Almasar secured Capital Market Authority (CMA) approval for the IPO, which will see the firm take a 30% stake — 30.7 mn shares — to market.

Institutional bookbuilding opens next week: Initially, 100% of the offering will be limited to institutional investors. They will be able to subscribe to a maximum of 5.1 mn shares each with the minimum amount set at 100k between 2-6 November. A 30% clawback is reserved for retail investors who will get a three-day subscription period starting Tuesday, 18 November; during which they can apply for a minimum of 10 shares and up to 250k shares each. Final allocations due Wednesday, 26 November.

REFRESHER- Amanat tapped SNB Capital in November 2024 to arrange the listing, which has been in the works since May 2024, when Amanat announced plans to carve out its education platform into a separate holding company. Its board discussed the proposal that July, and Almasar was formally launched as a standalone brand in March 2025, with headquarters in Riyadh. Reuters reported last year that the offering could raise around USD 300 mn.

Post-IPO structure: Amanat Holding will be netting all the proceeds from the sale, with its shares remaining in lockup for a period of six months from listing.

Earnings snapshot: Almasar’s revenues jumped 23% y-o-y to SAR 153.8 mn in 1Q 2025, while its net income was up 6.2% y-o-y to SAR 48.8 mn over the same period. The company said it intends to distribute annual dividends subject to profitability and cash flows.

The rationale: The offering comes as Almasar sees steady growth in its earnings and rising enrollment across its schools and centers, CEO Fadi Habib told Asharq Business (watch, runtime: 8:16) in an interview, adding that demand for private and higher education in Saudi Arabia and the UAE remains supported by long-term national development plans. Almasar Education operates across Saudi Arabia and the UAE, serving more than around 28k students.

The firm has been aggressively expanding here at home, doubling its day-care centers for students with special needs to 39 up from 21 in 2022 and increasing its schools 14 from 10, Habib told Asharq Business. It earmarked SAR 115 mn in capex to lift day-care capacity to about 8k students, 50-70% of which is already invested, with 15 new schools and centers slated to open over the next two years.

Almasar is also banking on higher education as a growth driver, looking to replicate the success of Middlesex University Dubai, where international students now account for half of enrollment, across Saudi campuses. “We’re focused on higher education in Saudi Arabia. We want to expand geographically and plan to invest in the Kingdom’s higher education sector in a way similar to what we’ve done in the UAE,” Habib said.

Not the only Amanat IPO in the cards? Earlier in 2023, Amanat was said to have tapped EFG Hermes and First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) to prepare a potential listing of its healthcare arm, which could see it raise about USD 200 mn in IPO proceeds.

ADVISORS- Our friends at EFG Hermes co-managed bookbuilding alongside SNB Capital who is quarterbacking the transaction as financial advisor, bookrunner, and underwriter with Clifford Chance acting as legal counsel to the issuer. Baker Mackenzie is advising the bookrunner, while PwC is handling financial and tax due diligence. Euromonitor International provided market research, and Deloitte is acting as auditor.

Receiving agents include EFG Hermes, SNB Capital, Riyadh Capital, Saudi Fransi Capital, AlJazira Capital, Yaqeen Capital, AlBilad Capital, ANB Capital, Derayah Financial, AlRajhi Capital, Alistithmar Capital, Alinma Investment, SAB Invest, Alkhabeer Capital, Sahm Capital, GIB Capital, Musharaka Capital, and Awaed Al Osool Capital.

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